Moot: On the day it was founded, 4chan was posted to the anime sub-forum of [huge forum] Something Awful and so many of the first users from from there, but the site itself is 100% based on a Japanese site called Futaba Channel, or 2chan.net.

Futaba Channel is in turn based on 2channel, which is a huge text BBS that's inspired a lot of the anonymous and otaku culture in Japan.

I had the opportunity to meet 2channel's founder, Hiroyuki Nishimura at SXSW Interactive this year, and it was a real treat.

Reddit: What made 4chan so popular?

Moot: The community. 4chan's culture is unique and spreads and draws people in like no other. It's also important to realize that 4chan wasn't some overnight success, and there was never "hockey stick"-like growth. Its growth has been entirely organic (we've never advertised, past posting it on day one to IRC and a forum), and has been a slow steady build over seven and a half years.

Reddit: How have you gotten away with hosting a site that consistently has child pornography posted on it? Have there been serious attempts to shut it down? How is the site monitored - do you forward illegal material and IP info to the FBI?

Moot: 4chan gets almost one million posts per day, hundreds of thousands of which are images. As with any large [user-generated content] site a very, very small percentage of these posts end up being contraband or questionable content. We have a team of volunteers who do an excellent job removing prohibited content, including [child pornography], which is then automatically reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's CyberTipline.

NCMEC acts as a clearing house and forwards reports to the appropriate law enforcement. This is how all major ISPs and online service providers do it.

Reddit: Has anyone gotten arrested for posting illegal content?

Moot: Yes. Anyone who posts illegal content on 4chan is an idiot.

Do you ever feel bad about all the peoples lives who have been ruined due to the ruthless antics of the people on /b/?

Moot: Yes, it's extremely unfortunate and regrettable.

Reddit: Have you become 100 percent immune to the horrors of the internet over the years?

Moot: Not entirely, but there isn't much that fazes me at this point.

Reddit: How many people does 4chan employ?

Moot: None. It's just me, a volunteer part-time developer, and a handful of volunteer moderators and janitors. The volunteers all do an incredible job, and don't get nearly enough credit for their hard work. Hats off to them!

Reddit: What do you think, 10 years from now, the lasting cultural legacy of 4chan will be?

Moot: That it shaped 'Net and [real life] culture in a way that few other communities/websites have.

Reddit: What aspects of 4chan do you wish people knew more about?

Moot: [That infamous troll-board /b/ isn't the same thing as 4chan] but also that the "15 year old hacker nerd" stereotype isn't very accurate. People often confuse the entire 4chan community with /b/. We have ~50 boards, all with their own amazing sub-communities and cultures. And tons of normal, functional people use the site. Our (first!) meetup at Barcade a few months ago was proof of that—everyone who showed up was extremely sociable, nice, and we all had a great time.

Reddit: Has anyone ever recognised you on the street?

Moot: Yes, it happens regularly, depending on where I walk. Areas with lots of college students/young people can be a minefield, so I tend to avoid them.

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